APPLICATION TO BOND WAREHOUSES, ETC.

Whenever it is desired to have any building constituted a private bonded warehouse of the second and third classes, the owner or occupant must make application in writing to the collector or other chief revenue officer of the port, describing the premises, the location, and capacity of the same, and setting forth the purpose for which such building is proposed to be used, whether for the storage of merchandise imported or consigned to himself exclusively, or for the general storage of merchandise in bond. This application, to entitle it to consideration, must be accompanied by a certificate, signed by the proper officers of two or more insurance companies, that the building offered is a first-class fire-proof store, according to the classification of insurance offices at that port.

It is the duty of the collector, upon receiving this application and certificate, to direct the superintendent of warehouses or other officer discharging the duties of such superintendent, to examine and inspect the premises, and to report in writing the particulars in relation to the location, construction, and dimensions of the store, the means provided for securing custody of the merchandise which may be deposited in the same, and all other facts having a bearing on the subject. On the receipt of this report, the collector is required to transmit the same to the Treasury Department, together with the application of the party, the insurance certificates, and a statement of his own views and opinion.

If the reports are satisfactory, and it appears that the public interest will be subserved thereby, the application is granted. The owner or occupant is then required to enter into a bond in the prescribed form, in such penalty and with such security as the collector may deem proper. A certified copy of this bond is to be forwarded to the Department, with a statement as to the sufficiency of the penalty and the responsibility of the obligors, for its approval, which having been signified to the collector, the building may be considered a duly constituted bonded warehouse. Applications for the bonding of yards and sheds as warehouses of the fourth class, are required to be made in a similar manner and under like regulations.

ACT OF LOUISIANA RELATIVE TO PERSONAL PROPERTY PLEDGED. The Legislature of Louisiana passed at its last session, which was approved March 15, 1855, an act the provisions of which we give below. This act repeals all laws of that State on the same subject matter, except what is contained in the Civil Code and Code of Practice :

AN ACT RELATIVE TO PLEDGES.

SECTION 1. That when a debtor wishes to pawn promissory notes, bills of exchange stocks, obligations or claims upon other persons, he shall deliver to the creditors the notes, bills of exchange, certificates of stock, or other evidences of the claims or rights so pawned, and such power so made without further formalities, shall be valid, as well against third parties as against the pledgers thereof, if made in good faith.

SEC. 2. That all pledges of movable property may be made by private writing, accompanied by actual delivery; and the delivery of property on deposit in a warehouse shall pass by the private assignment of the warehouse receipt, so as to authorize the owner to pledge such property; and such pledge, so made without further formalities, shall be valid, as well against third persons, as against the pledgers thereof, if made in good faith.

SEC. 3. That if a credit not negotiable be given in pledge, notice of the same must be given to the debtor.

SEC. 4. That in all pledges of movable property, it shall be lawful for the pledger to authorize the sale or other disposition of the property pledged, in such manner as may be agreed upon by the parties, without the intervention of courts of justice.

REGULATIONS FOR THE INSPECTION OF FLOUR IN NEW ORLEANS.

The subjoined act of the Legislature of Louisiana, passed at the session of 1855, and approved March 15, 1855, repeals all laws contrary to its provisions, and all laws on the same subject matter:

AN ACT RELATIVE TO THE INSPECTION OF FLOUR IN THE CITY OF NEW ORLEANS.

SECTION 1. That the Governor shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint five Inspectors of Flour in the city of New Orleans.

SEC. 2. That they shall be entitled to charge five cents on each barrel of flour inspected by them, in full compensation of their services.

SEC. 3. That each barrel of flour shall contain one hundred and ninety-six pounds of flour, English weight, and if intended for the first quality, shall be branded “superfine;" and on each barrel intended for the second quality shall be branded "fine;" and on each barrel intended for the third quality shall be branded "middlings;" but where any flour shall be found to correspond with the manufacturer's brand, as superfine or fine, the inspectors shall brand "City of New Orleans," which shall entitle it to be sold as bearing the quality thereon described. If the quality of the flour branded by the manufacture as superfine, shall appear by inspection to be fine only, or when marked as fine, shall appear to be superfine, such inspector, in addition to the words City of New Orleans, shall add fine or superfine, as the case may be. No inspector shall purchase any flour other than for his private use, under the penalty of four hundred dollars.

SEO. 4. That for the inspection of flour the inspector shall be provided with a halfinch barrel augur, with which each barrel of flour shall be bored into, so as to satisfy themselves of the quality of the flour; and if any flour shall be found, on examination, to contain a mixture of Indian meal, or any other mixture, the person offering the same shall forfeit and pay the sum of four dollars for every barrel so mixed, and the flour shall be liable for the payment thereof.

SEC. 5. That if any person shall alter or erase any brand or mark of the inspector, every persou so offending shall forfeit and pay the sum of fifty dollars for every such offense, one half to the use of the person prosecuting for the same.

PURCHASE OF BELLIGERENT SHIPS BY NEUTRALS.

In the prize case of the Johanna Emilia, lately before the British High Court of Admiralty, the vessel in dispute, captured by a British cruiser in the Baltic, was alleged by the captors to be Russian property, and by the claimants to have been sold before captured to a Hamburger. In considering the question, the court (Dr. Lushington) says:

"With regard to the legality of the sale, assuming it to be bona fide, it is not denied that it is competent to neutrals to purchase the property of enemies in another country, whether consisting of ships or anything else. They have a perfect right to do so, and no belligerent right can override it. The present inquiry, therefore, is limited to whether there has been a bona fide transfer or not."

It is to be hoped that the French government, which applauds itself on having in the present war brought Great Britain up to its own liberal point of admitting that free ships make free goods, will now respond by abandoning its own obsolete fallacy of denying to neutrals the right of purchasing belligerent ships, when Great Britain herself refuses to respect the ordinance of Louis XVI., and emphatically declares that neutrals have a perfect right to do so, which no belligerent can override.

HOW BONDS FOR DUTIES MUST BE SIGNED.

BONDS FOR DUTIES. Under the twenty fifth section of the act of March 1, 1823, a merchant belonging to a firm entering into any bond for duties in the name of the firm, thereby binds his partner or partners in trade. But partners of a firm signing such bond must each sign individually.

JOURNAL OF INSURANCE.

LEGAL OPINION ON ILLINOIS INSURANCE LAW.

TO MESSRS. HALL, WHITE, AND EVANS, Committee, &c. :—

GENTLEMEN :-I have examined the accompanying copy of the " Act to regulate the agencies of insurance companies not incorporated by the State of Illinois," and reply to the various questions proposed by you as follows:

"1. When does the law go into force ?"

The last clause of the 23d section of the 3d article of our State constitution is in the following words: "And no public act of the General Assembly shall take effect or be in force until the expiration of sixty days from the end of the session at which the same may be passed, unless, in case of emergency, the General Assembly shall otherwise direct." The act in question is a "public act" within the meaning of the clause of the constitution above quoted, and therefore does not become a law until sixty days after the adjournment of the late Legislature. I am informed that the Legislature adjourned on the 15th day of February last, and if so, of course the act in question does not take effect or become of force until the 16th of the present monthnext Monday. It is therefore not yet a law, and cannot authorize the performance of any act, and no act can be done under it or in pursuance of it, that can possibly have any force or virtue whatever.

2. "Has the Auditor a right to give a certificate to do business until the law is in force?"

Until the act becomes of force and takes effect it confers no authority. In contemplation of law, the act does not yet exist as a law, and until it becomes a law it has no power. Of course, if it has no power in itself, it confers none. The Auditor can receive no authority from the act until the act becomes a law in force and effect, and as he has no authority, of course he cannot grant a certificate. He is not yet authorized to receive and file a statement even, for as yet there is no law authorizing him to do so.

3. "When can he give a certificate?"

Not until the law takes effect, and not then unless the statement required by the law to be filed by the person applying for a certificate has been legally filed in conformity with the provisions of the law. The law provides explicitly, both as to the manner and substance of the statement to be filed, and the time when the same must be so filed.

4. "What year in March is the first statement to be made to the Auditor?"

This question touches the real trouble and difficulty in the law. The clause of the act appertaining to the time when statements may be filed reads as follows: "The statement and evidences of investment required by this act shall be renewed annually in the month of January in each year, the first statement to be made in the month of March next," &c. It is obvious that the framer of the act either forgot the constitutional provision governing the time when the act would take effect and become a law, or else forgot to add the stereotyped clause, providing "that the act should take effect and be in force from and after its passage." Had this usual clause been attached, it would have remedied all difficulty as to the particular month of March intended by the act. But it was not added, and now it remains to inquire what effect courts will

give to the phrase "the first statement to be made in the month of March next." Upon reflection, it seems to me there can be very little doubt in the case. When does the law first begin to speak-when does it first utter its command? It may be said to have had its conception on the 17th of February, when the Governor approved of it, perhaps, but it has no birth until the period of sixty days from and after the adjournment of the Legislature. It is not alive-it has no voice-it cannot speak until the 16th of April. On that day it first has life, and then it can speak, and its commands are instinct with all the embodied power of absolute government. On that day it opens its mouth, and when it says "next March," it cannot and does not refer to a past March, but its words must be taken to mean precisely what they say, and that is next March. I have therefore no doubt that March, 1856, must be the month indicated by the law, and that it will be so held if ever adjudicated upon.

But there are still grave questions wrapped up in this peculiar clause of the law. One is, can these statements be filed legally at any other time than in the month of March, 1856, either before or after, or must they be filed during that month and at no other time, and if they cannot is the effect of the law to prohibit the transaction of business by agents of incorporated foreign insurance companies until next March, and also after next March if during that month statements are not filed and certificates granted by the Auditor? The phraseology of the act is peculiar. The clause under examination is phrased as if it was a merely incidental and almost accidental matter, and yet it involves one of the most important and substantive provisions of the whole

act.

It involves a stringent limitation. Giving the words their full force and effect, and true signification, they exclude the possibility of making the required statement to the Auditor, and of course of obtaining from him the necessary certificate until the month of March, 1856. Nor can any statement be filed or certificate obtained after that month shall have transpired. The law expressly provides for renewals of statements in January of each year, but absolutely limits the filing of original or first statements to the month of March next! It is so adroitly worded to avoid notice or invite examination, and is so well calculated to deceive by conveying in a careless and apparently almost accidental manner, a provision of such importance and of such far-reaching effect, that it cannot but excite suspicion that it was intentional. Still the words are there, and courts must give them their effect, and as they have but one meaning, but one conclusion can follow. Until March next, it would seem to be a penal offense, punishable by fine, imprisonment, and very low diet, to act as the agent of a foreign incorporated insurance company. After March next the same rule holds as to all agents who shall not have during that month filed their statements and obtained the Auditor's certificate.

5. “Does the law when in force include marine and life insurance companies, or any companies but those incorporated ?"

The words of the law are broad enough to include, and I doubt not will be held to include the agencies of foreign incorporated marine and life insurance companies as well as those issuing against fire. There are no words of limitation confining the application to any particular class of incorporated insurance companies, but the phraseology embraces all foreign incorporated insurance companies that issue policies.

The act is a penal one, and must therefore be construed strictly. By its terms it only applies to the agencies of incorporated companies. Agents of companies or associations not technically incorporated are not amenable to its provisions.

April 10, 1855.

MARK SKINNER.

ACT OF NEW YORK RELATIVE TO DIVIDENDS OF INSURANCE COMPANIES. The following Act was passed by "the People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, March 19, 1855, and is now in force." (Chapter 75.)

AN ACT RELATIVE TO UNCLAIMED DIVIDENDS OF INSURANCE COMPANIES.

SECTION 1. Every insurance company or association for fire, marine, or life risks' conducted on the mutual principle or otherwise, now or hereafter incorporated or organized, or doing business under any general or special law of this State, on or before the first day of September next, and annually thereafter, shall cause to be published for six successive weeks in one public newspaper printed in the county in which such company or association may be located, and in the State paper, a true and accurate statement, verified by the oath of the treasurer or presiding officer, of all dividends and interest declared and payable upon any of the stock, bonds, or other evidence of indebtedness of said company or association, which, at the date of such statement shall have remained unclaimed by any person or persons authorized to receive the same, for two years then next preceding: and the word “dividend” shall include all scrip issued or declared due for unpaid earnings or profits. SECT. 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

NAUTICAL INTELLIGENCE.

OF PILOTS APPOINTED BY THE PILOT COMMISSIONERS IN NEW YORK.

NOTICE TO MERCHANTS AND SHIPMASTERS.

The Pilot Commissioners-(C. H. Marshall, Robert Taylor, E. E. Morgan, appointed by the Chamber of Commerce, and George W. Blunt, Russel Sturges, and F. Perkins, appointed by the Board of Underwriters,)-being frequently applied to in regard to off-shore pilotage, detention, &c., beg leave to refer to the law of the State of New York, passed June 28, 1853, and as amended April 11, 1854, copies of which can be had at the office, 69 South-street. They especially refer to part of section 13 and sections 17 and 29, as below. The Commissioners also beg to state that they do not consider themselves as having anything to do with the agreements made at sea between pilots and masters :

SECTION 13. When any ship or vessel, bound to the port of New York, and boarded by any pilot appointed by this Board, at such distance to the southward or eastward of Sandy Hook Light-house, as that said light-house could not be seen from the deck of such ship or vessel in the day time, and in fair weather, the addition of one-fourth to the rate of pilotage hereinbefore mentioned shall be allowed to such pilot.

SEC. 17. For every day of detention at the wharf or in the harbor beyond the time notified to the pilot for him to attend the vessel, or beyond the usual time of getting vessels from sea to the wharf, and from the wharf to sea, and for every day of detention of an inward bound vessel by ice longer than two days for the passage from sea to the wharf, three dollars shall be added to the pilotage; and if any pilot shall be detained at quarantine by the health officer, for having been on board a sickly vessel as pilot, the master, owner, agent, or consignee of such vessel, shall pay to such pilot all necessary expenses of living, and three dollars per day for each and every day of such detention.

SEC. 29. Any person not holding a license as pilot under this act, or under the laws of the State of New Jersey, who shall pilot, or offer to pilot, any ship or vessel to or from the port of New York by the way of Sandy Hook, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction shall be punished by fine not exceeding one hundred dollars, or imprisonment not exceeding sixty days; and all persons employing a person to act as pilot, not holding a license under this act, or under the laws of the State of New Jersey, shall forfeit and pay to the Board of Commissioners Pilots, the sum of one hundred dollars.